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Democrat Ed FitzGerald, Green Party's Anita Rios Join Debate Missing an Incumbent

Photos: Donn Nottage / City Club of Cleveland
Photos: Donn Nottage / City Club of Cleveland

There wasn't much disagreement on stage between Democrat Ed FitzGerald and Green Party candidate Anita Rios.

FitzGerald said his record as Cuyahoga County Executive should hold more sway with voters than the fact that he went without a permanent driver's license for years.

"We created the biggest the biggest economic and jobs program in the state of Ohio of any county," Fitzgerald said. "We had an early childhood education initiative. We had an infrastructure initiative. We had a renewable energy initiative. We did things like fight for voting rights."

Rios said she'd restore the estate tax if elected and would set half of her salary aside for interns. She criticized Kasich for allowing abortion clinics to close under the pressure of a new state law -- and for cuts in state aid to local governments.

"I care about what he has done with JobsOhio," Rios said. "I care about him gutting our communities, taking so much of the tax revenue away from our communities to be able to cut taxes for wealthy people."

Kasich declined an invitation to join the debate. The latest Quinnipiac poll shows him ahead of FitzGerald by 22 points.

Nick Castele was a senior reporter covering politics and government for Ideastream Public Media. He worked as a reporter for Ideastream from 2012-2022.